There was almost no physical evidence in the case, which was noted as a curious thing since the crime was brutal, and the Golub basement, according to detectives, was in a state of complete disarray. Still, only a partial bloody palm print was found in one doorway; DNA tests linked the print to Robert Golub. There was the phone call to the Tinyes house the afternoon of the murder, but no one knew who placed it. There were the other boys in the house, but they claimed to know nothing. There was the statement of a 7-year-old neighbor who said she saw Kelly walking into the house. The Golubs floated the idea that an “intruder” had come inside and committed the crime.

Despite a case based almost entirely on circumstantial evidence and despite his protestations of innocence, Robert Golub was found guilty. It was a “stop the press” moment at the Heralds. We had a different story and headline on the front page, but when we got the phone call that the jury was in, the publishers stopped the press and put the “Golub guilty” banner on the front page.

In the years that followed, bitter fighting continued on Horton Road, where both families lived. Police were called to the scene frequently, when name-calling and accusations escalated into confrontations.

In November, Robert Golub was eligible for parole. At his hearing, he said, for the first time, that he was responsible for Kelly’s death, concocting a story about her falling down the stairs, his losing his temper in a steroid rage and her dying, nearly accidentally, according to his account.

Speaking as a columnist, not as a reporter, which I was at the time, I view his statement as self-serving and contemptible. It is inconsistent with the facts presented at trial, and a transparent bid to get out of jail “free.” In addition, his description of Kelly’s death can only heap pain upon suffering for her parents and her brother. Robert Golub claimed remorse in his parole statement, but I don’t believe him.